COUNTRY FRAUD PROFILE: MOZAMBIQUE

UNCLAS MAPUTO 000953

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS KFRD MZ
SUBJECT: COUNTRY FRAUD PROFILE: MOZAMBIQUE


1. (SBU) Consular Fraud Summary: Mozambiques porous borders, underpa
and ill-equipped border security forces and lack of technological
infrastructure make it an inviting transit country for mala fide
travelers, immigrant smugglers and immigrant traffickers. Mozambican
passports and residency permits can be easily obtained through the
payment of bribes to immigration officials, and are also available
through other illegal channels. It is difficult for Post to obtain
detailed information or statistics on immigrant smuggling and
trafficking from Mozambican officials, as often written records are n
kept or information is inadequately recorded. Post has also
encountered a general unwillingness on the part of Mozambican
government officials to share immigration fraud-related information
that may later implicate immigration or police officials. End Summary


2. (U) Country Conditions: Twice the size of California with over 1,5
miles of coastline, Mozambique has geography that plays an important
political and economic role. A Portuguese colony until gaining
independence in 1975, Mozambique is defined by four corridors: toward
South Africa and Swaziland in the south; Zimbabwe and Zambia in the
west; Malawi and Tanzania in the north; and the Indian Ocean to the
east. Approximately 20% of the population is Muslim, a percentage
concentrated primarily in the northern provinces. Despite rapid
economic growth since the end of the civil war in 1992, Mozambique
remains one of the worlds poorest countries with more than 40% of it
citizens surviving on less than $1 per day. Corruption is one of the
paramount problems facing the democratic development of Mozambique, a
contributes significantly to the growing problem of immigrant smuggli
and trafficking. The majority of people being smuggled or trafficked
are bound for South Africa. However, in April 2006, a group of 66
Bangladeshis were caught entering Mozambique illegally by sea and wer
reportedly planning to stay in the Nampula province of Mozambique.
Mozambique is also battling a growing HIV/AIDS problem, with an HIV
infection rate estimated at approximately 16% of adults.


3. (SBU) Visa Fraud: Mozambican nationality and identity documents (a
well as residency permits) are obtainable on either the black market
by bribing immigration officials. These documents have very limited
security features compared to passports issued by other countries in
the region. Third-country national applicants claiming to be Mozambic
citizens and third-country national applicants presenting Mozambican
residency permits must be thoroughly scrutinized by interviewing
consular officers to assess Portuguese language ability, familiarity
with the country and culture, and economic ties. The 66 Bangladeshis
who were arrested and deported all had authentic Mozambican visas whi
were reportedly stolen in Swaziland.


4. (SBU) Approximately 22% of NIV applicants are third-country
nationals. The countries representing the largest number of applicant
beginning with the most prevalent, are South Africa, India, Pakistan,
and Zimbabwe. Document fraud is difficult to detect since official
documents often lack security features, and even legitimate documents
are often of poor quality with bio pages containing photos with
partially laminated pages and handwritten biodata.


5. (SBU)ACS Fraud: Incidents of ACS fraud are rare. However, Post
reported via Maputo 00911 and continues to monitor a case of fraud in
which an American allegedly posed as a doctor in a tourist town in
order to profit from ordering nighttime medical evacuations. A Spani
citizen recovering from decompression sickness in Mozambique apparent
died as a result of an ill-advised evacuation to South Africa.
According to the autopsy report, the high-altitude flight contributed
to the death. The doctor has left Mozambique. The case is private
being investigated as a homicide and formal charges may be brought in
South Africa or Mozambique.

DUDLEY
Y